Obvious - oneshot
by lucia-rivers
Summary: Derek is struggling to concentrate in the library and when a certain strawberry blonde decides to join him it doesn't help matters at all. The preview chapter for Obvious! (AU/AH) DPOV.


Hey! So, I've re-uploaded this one-shot here as I'm currently working on turning 'Obvious' into a series.

This is my first fanfic so please review and let me know what you think! I do not own the Darkest Powers.

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As usual, I found myself sitting in the library during free period, struggling to find the motivation to write my history project. My partner, Amber, a loud cheerleader with hair the colour of her namesake, was happier presenting so I was glad I could at least get the facts straight for her.

I relaxed back into my chair, at least enjoying the comforts of my own secluded table. There was a low chatter from the other students scattered around the place and I watched the mixture of desperate students trying to meet deadlines and the chilled group-study sessions laughing and joking around. I wanted to get this essay done before the school day was out; however, my mind was elsewhere.

"Hey," a soft voice pulled me from my frustration. I looked up to see an equally flustered Chloe, laden with books and her hair falling around her face from her messy bun.

"Can I join you?" she motioned to the empty seat opposite me. I nodded and she sat down quietly, a flurry of papers spilling out around her. She grimaced at me apologetically as she ordered her things. Once she settled, I tried once again to focus on my essay. Like that was going to happen.

I'd managed to squeeze out two more boring sentences before I chanced a look at Chloe. She was staring dreamily out of the window. With the dappled sunlight streaming in and bouncing off her pale skin she looked like an angel. Her blonde bun shone like a halo and her bright blue eyes were glazed over slightly. Tearing my eyes away from her, I looked at the neglected worksheet in front of her. The reason for her daydream became clear: algebra. Not the basics, but easy enough for her and glancing back up, I wondered what she was thinking.

"Chloe." my voice was low but Chloe jumped with a start. A faint blush crossed her face as she looked back down at her books.

"Sorry," she apologised, clearing her throat. Though it looked like she was now staring intently at the pages in front of her, her eyes were still unfocused. I continued to look at her and eventually, sensing my gaze, she looked up at me through her lashes.

"What?" she asked bashfully and, when I said nothing, she followed with an unconvincing "I'm fine."

We continue to stare at each other, expressions forcibly blank, until she sighed heavily leaning back in her chair.

"I suck at maths," I barked out a laugh and she returned it with a self-deprecating grin, "I thought that if I sat next to a genius like you then maybe I'd be able to focus and channel some of that mojo."

"Mojo?" I smirked, raising my eyebrow to stop a full-on grin. It wasn't news to me that I was smart; it was just nice to hear it from her. That familiar warmth hummed within me even as she rolled her eyes at me.

"Shut up." Chloe looked back down at her work pencil waggling in her fingers. I reached out to grab it and our fingers brushed against each other. I ignored the rush that ran through me.

"Let me see." I stood up to take the seat next to her instead, pencil still in hand.

"N-No, i-it's fine, I didn't want to distract you," she stuttered as I sat down, pulling the book towards me. If I didn't know her better I would have taken offence at the nervous stammer.

"Too late." I grumbled but didn't mean it. I'd already seen what she was working on but I studied the pages for longer than I needed to. The chair was closer than I had anticipated and I could smell Chloe's flowery perfume as I leaned over her work. Once I was semi-composed, I showed her where she had gone wrong. When she didn't respond I looked over my shoulder at her. Our faces were inches apart but she wasn't facing me. Her blush was stronger now but her eyes were trained on the question I was addressing. When she looked back at me there was a mixture of confusion and something else I wasn't quite certain of.

"I don't even know what I don't know." She sounded so defeated that I couldn't not help. I pulled my gaze away from hers and scribbled the proof on a blank sheet of paper. Without looking back at her, I carefully went through it step by step and applied it to the question she was working on. She didn't say anything as I explained but she had leaned forward slightly that her shoulder was pressing lightly against the back of my arm as I wrote.

"Could you autograph that for me?" Chloe said when I was done, not even trying to hide a smirk. I relaxed, not knowing how tense I was in the first place, and let out a sarcastic "ha ha". I pulled my notebook towards me, not wanting to move from my new seat next to Chloe. She didn't seem to mind as she continued to work through the problems.

"Thanks." she said softly, and I looked up to see her looking at me out of the corner of her eye.

"Don't thank me yet, you're proof-reading this thing when I'm done." I said gesturing to the pathetic excuse for an essay in front of me. My uncharacteristic and over-dramatic tone made her giggle, a quiet twinkling noise that made me feel light and almost dizzy.

We fell into a comfortable silence after that, each pretending to concentrate on their own work, our legs lightly brushing together but neither of us moving or saying a thing.


End file.
